Double-sided bar code doubling as a single bar code

ABSTRACT

A bar code including a first linear bar code portion, and portions with two-dimensional bar codes at the ends of the first bar code portion. A separation through the first portion. The two-dimensional bar code at each end is inverted from the other end, and in an embodiment is also rotated 180°, which enable the two-dimensional bar codes on separated parts of the single bar code to be identical.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is based upon and claims priority to U.S. provisionalpatent application Ser. No. 60/341,763 filed Dec. 17, 2001 and entitledMODIFIED BAR CODE SUBSTITUTING FOR DOUBLE-BAR CODED LABELS, the entirecontents of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a system and method for creating a barcode, and more particularly, to printing a single bar code that can beused as two bar codes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A bar code symbology is a set of encoding algorithms, that essentiallyprovides the grammar for the production of a bar code pattern. As inwritten languages, bar code symbologies have rules of grammar thatdictate how the pattern of bars and spaces are formed for any particularcoded data.

Among the most common bar code symbologies in the U.S. and Canada is theUniversal Product Code (UPC-A). Referring now to the drawings whereinlike numerals indicate like elements, there is shown in FIG. 1 a barcode symbol 10. The bar code symbol 10 comprises has a linear portion 12and a human readable portion 14. The linear portion 12 comprises apattern of bars 16 and spaces 18. The dimensions of the bars and spacesin the symbol are typically exact multiples of a unit bar. The unit baris a narrow bar having a predetermined width for a bar code symbol at agiven magnification.

FIG. 2 shows an example prior art bar code image that has the RSS-14Limited bar code symbology. Such a bar code comprises a two-dimensionalcomponent 20 that is coupled to ends of the linear portion 12 of the barcode. Much more information can be encoded into an RSS-14 limited barcode image than a UPC-A bar code image, and therefore, no human readableportion is shown in the bar code image in FIG. 2.

Prescription drugs, other medications, and some medical devices employ amethod that uses two bar coded labels to expedite record keeping. Knownin the art as “double bar-coded labels,” two identical bar codes areprinted on a single label. One of the bar codes appears in the main bodyof the label. The second bar code appears on a portion of the labelintended to be removed by, typically by tearing through perforations.Whenever a product having a double bar coded label is administered to apatient, the removable portion of the label is torn from the productlabel and applied to the patient's record, for example, via aself-adhesive backing.

The prior art method of using double bar coded labels, however, carriesthe possibility of errors. For example, the two bar codes comprising thedouble bar coded label may be printed such that one bar code may notmatch the other. Moreover, one of the bar codes in the double bar codedlabel may be unreadable. In such case, the product may be scanned intohospital records but the label applied to the patient record isunreadable.

Additionally, printing two bar codes on a single label can be difficultand time-consuming. For example, a graphic designer who prepares artworkcomprising double bar coded labels may mistakenly place two differentbar code images in the artwork instead of two copies of the same barcode image. The information encoded in the bar code image is not humanreadable, and the information encoded in the bar code image may not beprinted in human readable form. Moreover, the graphic designer mustperform quality control to check his or her work for accuracy. To thisend, and to prevent bar code production errors, bar coded labels must beverified with electronic verifiers to assure ability of each bar code tobe printed and read. The verified results of each bar code are comparedto each other to ensure the data match. The comparison is typically donemanually, and therefore can also result in error.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to address the above-described problems in the prior art, theinvention comprises positioning at the opposite ends of a standardlinear bar code a two-dimensional bar code image, such as an RSS-14limited bar code image. It is intended that the linear bar code, andparticularly the surface, e.g., the label on which the bar code isprinted, be separated, into an upper and a lower portion. Each portioncontains part of the linear bar code and a respective portion includingthe same, entire two-dimensional bar code. The height of the linear barcode is increased, e.g., doubled, so that even when the bar code or thesurface on which it is printed is separated e.g., along a separationline, defined by a perforation, or the like, enough of the linear barcode along with the respective portion of the two-dimensional bar coderemain on the surface to be read.

The two-dimensional bar code image printed above and below the linearbar code may be printed in different ways. In one version, the image onthe bottom is a mirror image, top to bottom, of the image on the top. Inanother version, the top and bottom images are inverted, e.g., one is amirror image of the other and the mirror image is rotated 180° around avertical axis. In the latter embodiment, whether the two-dimensional barcode image is above or below the linear bar code, when thetwo-dimensional image is received on the separated top or bottomportions of the complete bar code, the two-dimensional portion of thebar code appears identical to view and to a scanning device.

The bar code may be printed on a surface, e.g., a label applied to anobject. An appropriate separator or separating line may be provided inthe bar code label enabling its separation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For the purposes of illustrating the invention, there is shown in thedrawings a form which is presently preferred, it being understood,however, that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangementsand instrumentalities shown. Further, it is intended herein that the barcode images provided in the corresponding reference figures are merelyillustrative, and that the bar code images shown in the figures will notyield useful information to a bar code reading device, such as ascanner.

The features and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from the following description of the invention that refers tothe accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a typical prior art UPC-A bar code image;

FIG. 2 shows a typical RSS-14 limited bar code image;

FIG. 3 shows a modified bar code image substituting for double bar codedlabels in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows a modified bar code image substituting for double bar codedlabels in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 shows a small example of a modified bar code image substitutingfor double bar coded labels in accordance with a third embodiment of thepresent invention; and

FIG. 6 shows a prescription medication label utilizing a modified barcode image substituting for a double bar coded label in accordance withthe present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a modified single bar code graphicimage that is substituted for two duplicate bar codes comprising priorart double bar coded labels. In accordance with the present invention,in an application of use of the invention, the linear portion of a priorart single bar code image is increased, for example, by at least twicethe height of a conventional linear bar code used in the particularapplication. From the increased height of a linear bar code used in theparticular application, substantially half of the height of the bar codegraphic image is separated from the other half of the height of theimage, e.g., by separating the bar code across the linear bar codesection. Each section of the bar code is removed and placed separately,for example, on a patient's chart. The height of the now separate linearportions is still tall enough to ensure that each of the portions of theoriginally single bar code image can be read by a bar code readingdevice, such as a scanner, wand, optical scanner or verifier. The addedheight further ensures that a part of the height of the bar code imagemay be destroyed while each of the portions remains capable of beingread by a bar code reading device. Both portions of the bar code imageare large enough and particularly tall enough to support a blank areasurrounding the image, for example, for graphic clarity and to support aquiet-zone that is required for reading.

FIG. 3 shows one preferred embodiment of the present invention. In theexamples shown in FIG. 3, a RSS-14 limited bar code image comprisingtwo-dimensional portions (20A and 20B) is shown. The top two-dimensionalcomponent (20A) is positioned as in a typical prior art RSS-14 limitedbar coded image. The bottom two-dimensional portion (20B) is positionedbelow the linear portion 12 of the bar code image. In the examples shownin FIG. 3, the bottom two-dimensional portion 20B is printed as aninverted mirror image of the top two-dimensional portion 20A. As shown,this means that if the paper on which FIG. 3 appears is inverted, theRSS-14 image will be the same, that is, the image then at the top isidentical and would be read the same as the other end image, were thelatter then at the top. To accomplish this, the linear portion 12 of theRSS-14 limited bar code image is extended, and the top two-dimensionalportion 20A is inverted and rotated 180° around a vertical (end to end)axis before being placed at the bottom of the linear portion 12 astwo-dimensional portion 20B.

In FIG. 3, a perforation 22 is preferably used for enabling tearing andremoval of a portion of the bar code image in accordance with thepresent invention. Perforation 22 may be a series of small holes, asingle line marking, a slit, a cut, another weakened line or otherdemarcation that enables removing a portion of the bar code image.

After one portion of the bar code image is removed, each of the removedportion and the remaining portion of the bar code still comprise acomplete RSS-14 limited bar code image that is capable of being read bya bar code reading device. Since the two-dimensional portion 20A and thetwo-dimensional portion 20B are identical but inverted images of eachother, the relationship between the linear portion 12 and thetwo-dimensional portions 20A and 20B is ensured. Moreover, by visuallyinspecting the modified RSS-14 bar code image shown in FIG. 3, a usercan determine that the two-dimensional portions 20A and 20B areidentical without the need for additional viewing devices, such aselectronic verifiers.

FIG. 4 shows an alternative embodiment of the present invention, whereinthe bottom two-dimensional portion 30B is not inverted as in FIG. 3, butis instead a top to bottom mirror image of the top two-dimensionalportion 30A. In FIG. 4, the bottom two-dimensional portion 30B is notrotated before being placed at the bottom of the linear portion 12 ofthe bar code image.

FIG. 5 shows an example RSS-14 limited bar code image 40 havingtwo-dimensional components as it may be sized, e.g., actual size of 1cm×0.8 cm.

Referring to FIG. 6, to reduce the possibility that the linear 12 andtwo-dimensional bar codes 30A and 30B on a product label 50 might notmatch, an imaging technique is devised whereby a single bar code 30,twice the normal height of a linear bar code typically used in thatapplication on a label is printed across the perforations 22 of apeel-off label 50. This insures that the bar codes 12, 30A and 12, 30Bof each label portion match at each side of the perforations 22. Thistechnique allows a user to visually inspect that the single bar code 30printed across both sides of the perforations are identical without theneed for additional viewing devices.

To reduce the area required to print two matching bar codes 12, 30A and12, 30B with surrounding clear space 51, a single bar code image 30 iscreated. The two intervening white spaces that would normally extendpast the abutting sides of the two label sections surrounding the labelsare eliminated, thereby reducing the overall space requirement for thebar code 30. This is particularly significant with regard toprescription drug labels, small ampoules and vials which have extremelylimited space for printing bar code images, e.g. 10 mm×15 mm.

Although the present invention has been described in relation toparticular embodiments thereof, many other variations and modificationsand other uses will become apparent to those skilled in the art. It ispreferred, therefore, that the present invention be limited not by thespecific disclosure herein, but only by the appended claims.

1. A bar code comprising: a first bar code portion providing firstinformation, the first bar code portion having opposite ends; a firstsection of a second bar code portion providing second information anddisposed at the first end of the first bar code portion; a secondsection of the second bar code portion disposed at the second end of thefirst bar code portion and also providing the second information,wherein the first and second sections of the second bar code portionprovide identical second information.
 2. The bar code in claim 1,wherein the bar code is imprinted on a surface and the surface includesa separation region across the first bar code portion, such that thesurface on which the bar code is imprinted may be separated at theseparation region to separate the bar code into first and second parts,each part including some of the first section of the first bar codeportion and a respective one of the sections of the second bar codeportion.
 3. The bar code of claim 2, wherein the bar code has adesignated application and the first information on the bar code firstportion is of a length between the opposite ends of the first bar codeportion that is greater than the length of the first bar codeinformation that is required for reading the first bar code informationin the designated application, the length of the first informationbetween the ends of the first bar code portion being selected so thatupon separation of the surface on which the bar code is imprinted intothe first and second parts, the length of the first bar code informationon each of the first and second parts measured from a respective one ofthe first and second ends to the separation region is sufficient that inthe designated application, the first information of the bar code can beread and the second information on each of the first and second parts ofthe surface can be read.
 4. The bar code of claim 2, wherein the firstinformation is linear bar code information extending between the firstand second ends of the first portion of the bar code.
 5. The bar code ofclaim 4, wherein the second bar code information is two-dimensional barcode information and differs from the linear bar code information in thefirst bar code portion.
 6. The bar code of claim 2, wherein the secondbar code information is two-dimensional bar code information and differsfrom the linear bar code information in the first bar code portion. 7.The bar code of claim 2, wherein the second information at the first endof the first bar code portion is upright in one orientation and thesecond information at the second end of the first bar code portion isinverted from the orientation of the second information at the first endof the first bar code portion.
 8. The bar code of claim 7, wherein theinformation at the second end of the first bar code portion isadditionally rotated 180° from the second information at the other endof the first bar code portion.
 9. The bar code of claim 1, wherein thefirst information is linear bar code information extending between thefirst and second ends of the first portion of the bar code.
 10. The barcode of claim 1, wherein the second bar code information istwo-dimensional bar code information and differs from the linear barcode information in the first bar code portion.
 11. The bar code ofclaim 1, wherein the second information at the first end of the firstbar code portion is upright in one orientation and the secondinformation at the second end of the first bar code portion is invertedfrom the orientation of the second information at the first end of thefirst bar code portion.
 12. The bar code of claim 1, wherein theinformation at the one end of the first bar code first portion isadditionally rotated 180° from the second information at the other endof the first bar code portion.